Native Son

Rating:
Summary: formative and formidable
Review: I read Wright's book at a time when I was wrestling with my own conservative roots. Wright doesn't try to draw our sympathy to an innocent black man wrongly accused. Bigger killed a white girl. He kills again while on the run. This guy deserves the chair or hanging, right?

But Bigger's acts are rightly portrayed in the light of his position in society. He is a black man in 1930s white America. He is trapped. This doesn't absolve his sins, but it does put some of his blood and that of his victims on our hands. We are all culpable for the violent effects of racism and other societal evils. Or as Mick put it, "I shouted out 'Who killed the Kennedy's?' when after all it was you and me."

Rating:
Summary: A captivating and intense read
Review: Have you ever met a person who you can't decide if you love them, hate them, or if you just pity them? This is the type of person Bigger Thomas is. He has a naturally violent nature about him, but as the story unfolds the root of his actions unfold. I begin to understand Bigger and he becomes so real that I feel the pain that he is feeling and I become emotionally trapped in the book. I have never found myself so disturbed over a book. This book will really make you think about the way society shapes some young peoples minds.

Rating:
Summary: hmmm
Review: two books here, really. the first is pure fiction at its best, albeit heavily influenced by Poe. the second half is socialist diatribe in the vein of THE JUNGLE by Sinclair. A must for an American fiction reader, otherwise you might not like this one.

Rating:
Summary: A Really Good Read
Review: Native Son is an excellent book that is quite deep on many levels. Richard Wright does an incredibly nice job of developing his main character, Bigger Thomas.

Bigger is a twenty year-old poor black man hired by a wealthy white family, and then accidentally kills the prominent young daughter out of fear. In covering up her death, he allows his emotions to get the better of him, and he rapes and kills another girl.

The first two sections of the book are loaded with intrigue, suspense, and drama, as the reader is right there with Bigger as he tries to mislead the murder investigation, and then runs from the large angry masses once his cover-up is foiled. The third section allows you to get into Bigger's mind and feel his confused emotions. Here, the reader is treated to Wright's views on society mainly through the voice of Bigger's trial attorney.

The language in the book is easy-flowing, and not terribly descriptive, which was done intentionally, so the reader could read between the lines and make clear assumptions. All in all, the novel was quite entertaining and rather eye-opening.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: Reading this book for high school English last year, I was struck immediately by the raw immediacy of Wright's style. There is no superfluous detail, no interruption in the taut suspense that he maintains from almost the first page. Some criticize the book for being too simplistic and say the characters are poorly drawn, but this is intentional-Wright forces you to read between the lines and actively search for meaning in the senseless violence and hate that pervades the story. The tripartite structure of the story (Fear, Flight, Fate) is strikingly parallel to Orwell's 1984, with the same basic plot and three divisions. Native Son is definitely the best work of American 20th-century fiction I have read.

Rating:
Summary: In Response to a Poor Review
Review: I typically would not bother to respond or offer criticism to another's review on any given book, but in this instance I feel the need to do so as a matter of setting the record straight. In his review on May 17, 2000, Rspellman asks why it takes 430 pages to tell a story of rape and murder. He goes on to say that, "Honestly, that's the whole plot itself." Whether or not this is true, it is more important to understand, I think, that a book's degree of quality should be based on more than just a plot. A book has characters that develop and unfold; it has a setting that one may never but through literature see; and, to make matters even better, the characters and setting and even plot are based upon an author's choice of language. Often, as in the case of Baldwin's Native Son, the language itself might be so beautiful that it breaks our hearts.

Rspellman states that the emphasis is on the white man in Native Son. The book presents an altogether larger social matter that plagued Chicago in the 1930s and still continues with remarkable similiarity today. Native Son is about the social circumstances of that period--a crucial one, in fact, as it is when the Great Black Migration had begun and Chicago was attempting to find a way to respond to it--and therefore has placed emphasis not on the white or black man, but on both, and how they respond to one another.

Finally, Rspellman states that he understands things were not easy for blacks, "back then," and that in order for America to correct itself from racist attitudes it should simply stop thinking about how difficult it really was. The truth is, the education of America's tangled past with racism is the only sure way to prevent further racism. When you understand others, you have a much better chance of leaving behind marks on the world that will help make it better. Literature such as Native Son can be a force which moves us in that direction.

Rspellman states that he is from another country, and while I hesitate to point out the importance of this, I must do so. To truly understand the American experience, it often takes years of exposure. You find it through the schools of childhood, the colleges, the neighborhoods, travels, arts, and so on. In the experience itself, the one issue that you can never escape from, no matter how much you might try, is race. Any American who has a true sense of its history knows this to be, as sad as it is, the truth.

Further suggested readings on race in America: Nicholas Lemann's The Promised Land; Ralph Ellison's Invisible Man; Lillian Smith's Killers of the Dream

Rating:
Summary: A Book to learn from
Review: I recently read Native Son,by Richard Wright, in my 8th grade English class while my class was reading To Kill a Mockingbird. Native Son is the shocking story of a young African American man, Bigger Thomas, living in the "black belt" of Chicago. Every second of his life he encounters the hateful separation society has put between blacks and whites. One night, caught in fear, anger and hate he commits his first murder against the daughter of his employer. Reading the two books simultaneously, I found many interesting comparisons between Native Son and To Kill a Mockingbird. They are both about the trial of a black man. In To Kill a Mockingbird the black man is innocent, however the racist town convicts him. Yet in Native Son he is guilty. Harper Lee tells her story through the point of view of a white person ( she herself is white) yet Richard Wright (a black man) tells the tale through Bigger's eyes. It is interesting to compare the two points of view, telling a similar tale through the two sides of racism. Both authors show their side of the story. Bigger's tale is told in a bigger and more dramatic way than how the whites regard the trial in To Kill a Mockingbird. Both stories portray the separation between African Americans and whites. Reading about this separation in both stories taught me a lot about this countries history. I learned about the strong hate that came between the races and the fear, anger and rage that results from it. The content of Native Son, is not always light. The hideous crimes Bigger commits are hardly small sins, but actions that effect an entire society. Wright's phenomenal writing described the hateful emotion of racism I will never understand. I found it difficult reading such horrible tales of hate, fear and anger. However, I found that reading it helped me to understand a lot of the scandalous society I live in. I learned to what degree racial discrimination of any kind can affect a person. It taught me a lot about issues I don't encounter everyday. I could not honestly say I liked this book; it is not a book one enjoys. It was a book that taught me a lot about our countries history and simple human emotions. I can only say that I am glad I read it, for it was a worthwhile experience. It is a hard book to read, both in language in content, but it shows an account that most likely happened at some time. Its historical aspects teaches the reader not only about racial discrimination but hate, anger and fear. Everyone living in America should read Native Son.

Rating:
Summary: Every day life and more to come
Review: This book was very good but emotional. In the beginning the book catches your attention quickly and gets you wondering what is going to happen next. This is one of the ways Wright build suspence in the story,making the reader want to read more. Then,in the second book flight it starts to explain what society is really about and how it is a shame what was going on back then. It also explains the theme of the story which was to show that society can be cruel just because of fear of something diffrent. I feel the characthers are defined very well,especially Bigger Thomas. He was a great symbol of everyday life which is good because it makes you as a reader think why do people do what they do. Towards the end it got kind of boring,but still had my mind thinking about why things like this happen and how it was delt with.In some parts it was very emotional. I would recommend it to highschool students,and adults. It will give them an idea of are society back then and today,it will also give them an idea of every day life in this decade and more to come.

Rating:
Summary: Only if you choose to
Review: Although this book's setting takes place in Chicago, it really didn't appeal to me. Richard Wright's style of writing is prolonged and boring. He can be suspenseful (at times! ), but you need more than that to appreciate a book. Why does it take 430 pages to tell a story about a young man who kills two girls and rapes one? Honestly, thats the whole plot itself. Another thing is that Richard Wright tries to emphaize everything on "white people". White is just a color, not a race. I understand things weren't easy back then for "blacks", but the more we look at it that way, the more people will keep thinking of our society as racist! Now that's a problem. I also didn't appreciate all the violence inflicted onto women. I'm not even from this country and this book seemed so silly to me.

Rating:
Summary: Native Son is a book worth reading
Review: The novel, Native Son, is a great story that illustrates racism in America. The main character, Bigger Thomas is continually treated unfairly because he is black. When he gets a job with a wealthy white family he accidently murders their daughter out of fear. He tries to cover up the murder and burns her body. He continues to try to escape because he is afraid that he is going to get arrested. He continues to run and gets into more trouble trying to escape. All of Bigger's acts of violence were done out of fear. Bigger is arrested and treated as a violent criminal. This novel illustrates that people can be mischaracterized by their actions when people don't actually know the person. In this novel, the reader gets to know Bigger's innocent, fearful character. This makes the reader feel sorry for Bigger and allows the reader to understand the effects of racism. The novel is filled with action and suspense that keeps the reader interested.